Signor op one-half to egbert r



(No Model.)

M. Y. THOMPSON.

RAILROAD TIE.

Patented Mar. 29, 1887.

VII

WITNESSES ATTORN EYS UNITED STATES PATENT OFEicE.

MELCHESEDEOK YOUNG THOMPSON, OF ARKADELPHIA, ARKANSAS, AS-

SIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO ROBERT R. ROSS, OF SAME PLACE.

RAILROAD-TIE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 360,397, datedMai-ch 29, 1887.

Application filed November 4, 1886. Serial No. 218,008. (No model.)

To (tZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, MELoHEsEDEoK YOUNG THOMPSON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Arkadelphia, in the county of Clark and State of Arkansas, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Railroad-Ties; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it ap-, pertains to make and use thesame, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to letters or figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

Figure 1 of the drawings is arepresentation of this invention, and is a top view of the tie used at the joining of the rails. Fig. 2 is a top view of the tie intermediate of the railjoints. Fig. 3 is a vertical section taken where the broken line 11:00 is marked on Fig. 1. Fig."

4 is an end view of a tie taken where the broken line y y is marked on Fig. 1. Fig. 5 is partly a vertical section taken where broken line 2 z is shown on Fig. 1. Fig. 6 is a perspective view of one of the slide-keys, and Fig. 7 is a detail elevation showing the tie in crossse ction.

My invention relates to rail-ties for railroadtracks; and it consists in the construction and novel combination of parts, as hereinafter described and claimed.

The object of the invention is to provide a combined metal and wood railroad-tie, which is used in connection with metal sliding keys to form the rail-chairs and to secure the rails and fish-plates in place without employing spikes or threaded bolts and nuts, as is now commonly practiced to secure the rails to their seats. I

The improved tie isessentially a metal tie, as the amount'of wood used in its construction is, comparatively speaking, very small in pro portion to the metal employed.

Referring by letter to the accompanying drawings, A designates one of the improved metal rail-ties, which is provided on itslower face near each end with transverse anchorpieces B, which, when the tie is in place on the road-bed, are embedded in the ground and serve to prevent the tie from having horizontal or lateral movement under pressure of the passing train. The balance of the lower face of the tie rests on the surface of the road-bed,

the spaces between the ties being ballasted in the usual manner.

Near each end the tie is provided in its upper face with tranverse recesses or grooves D and E, which extend entirely across the face of the tie, and are of a width equal to the width of the basis of the rails, the grooves being 10- cated in accordance with the width of the gage. At each side of the transverse grooves or recesses D and E, and short distances therefrom, are the transverse grooves G H, which are dovetail grooves; and the grooves G H and the recesses D and E are intersected by four dovetail grooves, I J K L, which are parallel longitudinal grooves, and are arranged on both sides of the transverse recesses D E. The transverse recesses D and E, in the anchorplates B, are each provided in their bottoms with pins M N, which project vertically upward therefrom for short distances and enter holes I? in thesmall wooden blocks Q R, which rest in the transverse recesses D E and nearly but not quite fill said recesses. The dovetail grooves I J K L are separated by dovetail ribs, and the upper surfaces of the wooden blocks Q R come nearly to the tops of said ribs, de- I The base-flanges of the rails rest directly on the wooden blocks Q R, which has the effect of giving the same amount of elasticity to the rails that a solid wooden tie would give.

T T TT designatelfourslide-keys, which are provided with shoudders U near their inner ends, which abut against the edges of the wooden blocks Q B when said keys are in place in their respective dovetail grooves. The inner ends of the slide-keys T T project beyond the shoulders U, and extend to and abut against the pins V, by which the fishplates W are secured in place when fish-plates are used. The fish-plates, however, are not essential in this construction, and maybe dispensed with entirely, if desired. Intermediate of their ends and in their lower faces the slide: keys T T, 820., are provided with transverse dovetail grooves X, which when said slidekeys T T, &c., are in place are aligned with the dovetail grooves G H of the tie. Slidekeys Y Y are inserted in the aligned grooves ICO 1o shouldered slide-keys T T, &c.

' Fig. 2.

H X, to hold the slide-keys T T, 820., in their seats.

Slide-keys T T T T, similar in construction to the slide-keys T T, &c., are employed in the 5 outer horizontal grooves, I J I J, and these keys T T, &c., are held in place by a transverse slide-key, Y, driven through the transverse grooves G and the aligned notches or dovetail recesses in the lower faces of the In their upper edges near their outer ends each of the slide-keys above mentioned are provided with shouldered depressions 0, into which the end of a bar or tool is to be inserted when it is desired to drive the slidekeys from their seats .after the transverse slide-keys Y Y have been driven from their seats in the transverse dovetailed grooves X. A hammer may be used to strikethe tool.

The construction hereinbefore described is these last-mentioned points to eight ribs that is to say, foursectional ribs-as shown in In other respects the construction is the same as that hereinbefore described.

I inclose the ends of the transverse grooves or recesses D E by metal plates g, which serve to protect the ends of the wooden blocks and vertically form boxseats for them. Fun thermore, in forming the wooden blocks I cut them to cause the grain of the wood to extend I 5 in the direction of the thickness of the blocks- 0 each joint-tie with thirtytwo dovetail ribs,

-, while the ties intermediate of thejoint-ties will have but sixteen dovetailed ribs. Should the fish-plates be dispensed with, the iron pins will still be used, and will be engaged by seats in the inner ends of the recessed slidekeys, so that the rails will be held firmly at the joints.

Having described this invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, 1s-

1. The combination, with a metal tie provided with transverse rail-seats and transverse key-seats, of the longitudinal key-seats and dovetail ribs, the wooden blocks, the recessed and shouldered longitudinal sliding keys, and the transverse sliding keys i'orlocking the recessed keys in their seats.

2. The combination, with a metal tie having anchor-pieces near its ends, the railseats, the longitudinal dovetail grooves, the transverse dovetail grooves, the recessed slide-keys, and the transverse slide keys, substantially as specified.

3. The combination, with the metal tie having the transverse railseats and the anchorpieees, ofthelongitudinal dovetail seatsand the transverse dovetail seats, the wooden blocks, the recessed slide-keys, and the transverse slide-keys for locking the recessed slide-keys in place, substantially as specified.

4. The combination, with the metal rail-tie provided with rail-seats and sliding keys, of the transverse pins in the webs of the rails, the recessed slide-keys, the transverse slidekeys, and the fish plates, substantially as specified.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

BIELCIIESEDECK YOUNG THOMPSON, 

